The Kingdoms’ Alliance referred to the four kingdoms in the southwestern part of the Salamander continent, and since they faced borders with the Kronos and Valhalla Empires, they created an alliance to protect one another.
Just like Cairo, they had always been sensitive to imperial issues. The difference was that they were still well-organized internally, but people say they wouldn’t have cared to compromise without the imperial threats.
They were water and oil. They made the alliance to survive, and they instinctively recognized how important Roman Dmitry was.
A few days after the Dmitry Duchy was declared, the Umberto royal family held a meeting headed by Count Verdi,
“Your Majesty, the recent civil war in Cairo is an exceptional event that has never been seen in the Salamander continent’s history. In the past, there have been incidents of anger and revenge against the empire for its actions. However, not a single one of them wrapped up as cleanly as this. Roman Dmitry boldly opened the gates, went out, and killed Count Fabio and Knight Gustavo, drawing in our alliance to prepare for the wrath of the empire. This means that he is someone who knows how to use his brain and body.”
Roman Dmitry’s actions shocked the continent, and everyone held their breath, paying attention to everything Roman Dmitry was doing.
“The atrocities of the Kronos Empire keep getting worse, and even though our Kingdoms’ Alliance has been holding on until now, there is no guarantee that we can do that forever. Roman Dmitry. We need to make him a member of our nation. He is still unmarried. As long as we can secure Roman Dmitry by making him marry our princess, our future will be secured.”
“Count Verdi. Doesn’t the princess already have someone she likes?”
“This is not the right time to care about her personal feelings. The continent’s situation is changing so much. Considering how the power of the Duchy was shown in the war, I cannot imagine how much it would grow. Now is our chance. We need to obtain Roman Dmitry. Furthermore, we need to accept the Dmitry Duchy.”
His breakup was the only flaw. In the past, it could have been an issue, but not now. It was well-known that Roman Dmitry defeated Knight Gustavo in his mid-20s and was likely to be the successor of the Duchy. In addition, even the Phoenix Magic Tower became a member of Dmitry. They were also rich and had iron mines, which made them the perfect ally with lots of resources. And so their mouths watered.
At Count Verdi’s strong insistence, the King said,
“I understand. I will entrust to you the full authority for this matter, so make sure Roman Dmitry accepts this marriage.”
“I shall follow your order.”
However, the other kingdoms were not any different. Except for the Frank Kingdom, the Redford Kingdom and the Odelia Kingdom were also saying the same thing.
And so now that the nations had figured out the intentions that the others had, they instinctively knew that a war had begun.
Again, the first one was Count Verdi. As if the representatives of the other kingdoms weren’t paying any attention, he turned to Duke Dmitry and spoke,
“This is true. I tried to refrain from bragging, but I have something to say. Duke, Princess Umberto is the most beautiful person in Umberto, and she has both beauty and wisdom to the extent that she graduated with excellent grades from a prestigious academy. Actually, many of the kingdoms wanted her hand, but His Majesty refused all of them, saying he cannot hand over his daughter.”
It wasn’t a lie. Actually, Princess Umberto received offers from many men and was someone who was wanted by everyone, but she said she would choose whom she would marry.
“But even His Majesty said that if it is Roman Dmitry, then he would accept him with open arms. Aren’t they a good pair? The marriage of Umberto’s beauty and the best man in Dmitry, I am sure this is the best decision for the future of both nations.”
Right after praising the princess, he raised the level of Roman Dmitry too. With a speech that melted the heart of the other person, Count Verdi was sure it would work.
However….
“Count Verdi. I have heard about the reputation the princess holds, but isn’t there someone she likes? Rumors say that she often meets a man from a Baron’s family. Is her relationship with him over?”
It was Viscount Ringo. When he mentioned the part that was kept a secret, Count Verdi lost it.
“What do you mean by that? The rumors you say have nothing to do with the truth.”
“Ah, but that is an open fact, so why deny it? Duke Dmitry. A person who has a partner they like will be happy with them. Just tell me what kind of woman you want. As soon as I return to the kingdom, I will bring you the list of daughters from noble families who fit the description. You do not have to worry about any issues related to divorce. No one will ever have an issue with it.”
“Viscount Ringo!”
The atmosphere had turned grim. When Count Verdi’s eyes turned red, Marquis Marten took over.
“Everyone, please hold yourselves back. Dmitry’s marriage is not a matter for us to discuss. It is for the future of the Dmitry Duchy, so it has to be done after a careful decision. We, Odelia, are the only nation that can match them. Think about it. Right now, Umberto and Redford aren’t in the best situations, so aren’t you being greedy by wanting someone like Dmitry?”
“YOU!”
The line was crossed. Viscount Ringo was holding back until then, but now it felt like he would burst.
“What kind of nonsense are you saying in such a nice atmosphere?! Marquis Marten. I thought you were a nice person, but you turned out to be rude. Apologize right now!”
“Apologize for what? The Duke said nothing about it, and yet you kept pushing the idea of marriage! Who is being rude?”
It was a mess. According to the rumors, they were only together because they wanted to live, but they didn’t actually get along.
The atmosphere intensified, and Duke Romero said,
“Everyone, please stop.”
Clench.
Silence fell. Everyone should have made themselves look good to the Duke, but here they were, threatening one another.
“Roman’s marriage is not my decision to make. I am not interested in tying him down in an arranged marriage. If Roman ties himself to a woman, it will be someone he has met and fallen in love with, and not for the sake of the nation. So you do not have to do this. Rather, try convincing Roman. If there is a woman who wins his heart, I will welcome her with open arms.”
At that point, they all looked at each other. It seemed like they just wasted their time.
When the mess was going on, Baron Larsson, the representative of the Frank Kingdom, had more issues than marriage to talk about with Roman.
“Mr. Felix.”
“… Baron Larsson.”
On the other side of the party, Felix, who was talking with two to three people, found Baron Larsson. The two were familiar with each other. To be precise, the man played a huge role in bringing Phoenix to Frank.
“Are you here as the representative of Frank?”
“Yes. It isn’t much, but can we talk about it separately?”
“… okay. Come here.”
And then they walked. They headed to the terrace, where people were scarce, and Baron Larsson got straight to the point.
“His Majesty of Frank was shocked to know that the Phoenix Magic Tower had suddenly left. I will not ask why you moved here, but can’t you come back to Frank? We are fully reflecting on the things we downplayed, and we will not spare any effort in funding and helping the Magic Tower. I promise it in my name.”
The civil war in Cairo—in the process of making Roman Dmitry famous, it brought attention to the people with him. It was Phoenix.
Regarded as the lowest among the Magic Towers existing on the continent, they demonstrated their ability to use the Burning spell, which was supposedly lost.
The image of Felix taking down Benedict Castle was talked about everywhere. And the Frank Kingdom was furious to hear such rumors. They thought Phoenix was no longer useful. A Magic Tower was something that needed constant money, but with their technique lost, they stopped funding Phoenix.
Then what was this? Things had changed. As they were subtly cutting down their support, the Phoenix magicians suddenly emptied the Magic Tower and disappeared, and then they appeared again while demonstrating their use of Burning.
They were confused. Thinking that Phoenix was theirs, the Frank Kingdom sent their representative right away. And the expression on Baron Larsson’s face said it. Even as he spoke, he was feeling shame for relaying this.
Felix’s expression hardened.
“You know it well. The Frank Kingdom broke their promise to Phoenix.”
“This time, it will be different. I will be in charge…”
“No. I don’t think anything will work. Do you know what the first thought that came to my mind after moving to Dmitry was? Trust—I learned it for the first time. Dmitry didn’t just want us to act out our duties. They respected us and made sure they did what they promised.”
After the war ended, Phoenix received so many calls. Everyone said they wanted Phoenix to move into their estate, but their answer was the same.
“We swore allegiance to Roman Dmitry. We aren’t staying here because of some conditions. We found someone who recognized our strength and worth, and we are not looking for other places until he no longer needs us. So please head back and tell His Majesty that our relationship with Frank is now over.”
Then he stepped back.
Seeing that, Baron Larsson couldn’t bear it. Even though Frank had the advantage, they made the mistake of letting Dmitry, a noble family, steal them.
He had a headache. Returning to the kingdom, he was worried about how to report it.
The same bed, yet different dreams. In the party hall, people moved for their own purposes. Roman Dmitry looked down from above.
‘The two empires didn’t send their representatives. Kronos already spoke about their intention to assassinate me, and Valhalla will not come as stepping here would mean that they have accepted Count Denver’s death.’
The empires’ positions were clear. People called Kronos the evil empire on the continent, but Valhalla couldn’t be seen as such a good empire either. How did Valhalla even reach the level of an empire? Naturally, they also trampled on other kingdoms and families just like how Kronos rose.
They were the same. Just as Kronos foretold the assassination, Valhalla would also think that it was necessary to take revenge for Count Denver’s death. And the people of the empire would follow them and take revenge. In order for an empire to be an empire, all problems had to be cleared.
“The situation on the continent is constantly changing. The Kronos Empire has just now revealed its ambition of conquering the continent, and everyone knows that Valhalla has the same ambition. Just as the representatives have gathered here, it will be a fight between the Kingdoms’ Alliance and the Empires.”
The Kingdoms’ Alliance was formed by the weak forces joining together. Frank, Umberto, Redford, and Odelia, and then Cairo and Hector.
Roman had no intention of blindly trusting the alliance of the weak. Being united because they were weak meant that someone could betray them and join the strong the moment the balance of power collapsed.
‘This alliance is temporary. In the end, I have to be able to stand up against the empire on my own.’
He felt thirsty. The moment he took a sip of his wine, Hans approached him and said,
“Young Master, a guest is waiting in the reception room.”
“I wasn’t informed that I would be meeting a guest. Who is there?”
The guest who was waiting was….
“The Prince of the Hector Kingdom.”
A few days ago, Edwin Hector, who shocked Knight Jonathan, who was guarding the castle’s gate, was the unexpected person looking for Roman.
